ANS Academy expands AI leadership apprenticeship sixfold

ANS Academy has expanded its Level 5 AI Leadership Strategy apprenticeship unit from two planned cohorts to six after demand exceeded expectations. The programme now has 71 potential learners in its pipeline.

The increase points to growing interest in AI training beyond specialist technology teams, as employers look for staff who can make decisions about its use, oversight and organisational adoption.

Participants in the current pipeline come from organisations in technology, housing, local government, data centres, fintech and financial services. Their roles span people, operations, compliance, commercial and customer functions, suggesting AI decision-making is being treated as a broader management issue rather than a narrow technical one.

The unit launched in July and was initially expected to support about 30 learners in 2026. Employer interest has instead led ANS Academy to triple the number of planned cohorts.

Broader demand

Current learners include directors of people, operations managers, heads of internal communications and engagement, heads of pre-sales, directors of research and development and customer success, and heads of compliance and infosec.

That mix suggests organisations are moving from early experimentation with AI tools to questions about where systems should be deployed, what risks they create and how they should be governed.

The eight-week programme is aimed at senior leaders, managers and aspiring leaders involved in AI strategy, investment decisions, risk management or organisational change. Learners are asked to turn a workplace AI opportunity into a business case, covering costs, feasibility, measurable outcomes, governance, security, auditability, stakeholder engagement and workforce impact.

Toria Walters, chief people officer at ANS, said demand is spreading across business functions.

"What we're seeing is that AI leadership is no longer something that sits solely with technology teams. People leaders, operations teams, compliance, customer functions and commercial teams all have a role to play in understanding where AI can create value and how it can be adopted responsibly.

That is exactly what this programme is designed to support, giving people the confidence and structure to move beyond simply understanding AI and start making better decisions about where and how it should be used," Walters said.

Leadership focus

Employer demand reflects a wider shift in how organisations are approaching AI projects. Early efforts often centred on testing tools and identifying possible uses, but companies are increasingly under pressure to show commercial value, set controls and define accountability.

That creates demand for managers who can assess whether an AI proposal is worth pursuing, examine its effect on staff and customers, and weigh governance questions before deployment. It also broadens the pool of employees expected to understand AI-related risks and opportunities.

The programme forms part of a wider effort by ANS to help organisations move from AI readiness to practical implementation with stronger internal skills and oversight. Based in Manchester, the company works across cloud, data, security and business applications, and through its academy has supported 247 apprentices in technology, finance, marketing and business administration over the past decade.

Richard Thompson said the conversation inside organisations is changing.

"The conversation is moving from 'what can AI do?' to 'where should we use it, what value will it create, and how do we do it safely?'.

Those are distinctly leadership-level questions, so organisations looking to become Frontier Firms need people across the business who can evaluate opportunities, challenge assumptions, understand risk and connect AI investment to meaningful business outcomes," Thompson said.